Hidden Gems

[Guest BigKev]

I guess you never know what you are going to find when working on your old car.

When I first got the '54 I was searching and searching to find an ignition switch for it as it was missing when I bought the car. As the '54 switch is a one year only switch I finally gave up trying to find one and bought a generic GM style dash mount switch from the local Autozone. When I got up under the dash, low and behold the original switch was still there just hanging out of sight. I guess someone took off the front bezel/retainer.

The other thing that I never had with the car was a set of keys to fit the locks. All the locks except for the trunk lock where original. Well today I was packing up my girls bedrooms for the move to the new house and I find a set of very grimey Packard keys in my 6 years olds toy box. One key is round the other hexagon shaped. So I ask her where she got them. She said they were laying under car in the garage. So I clean all the gunk off of them until they are shiney brass again, and what do you know they fit the ignition, doors, and glove box. All I can figure is that those keys were hidden up under the front of the car somewhere and when I took off the front clip they fell out from their hiding place.

I guess you never know what you can find. All I have to do now if file down the tumbers on the NOS trunk lock I bought to fit the original keys and life is good. Question, which key is the trunk lock? Round or Hexagon?

All I need now is a pile of cash to be hidden behind the door panels and life would be grand.

[Guest imported_Packards1]

I had a similar think happen to me. I removed the rear seat of my 400 and laying on the floor was the original factory build sheet. You never know what you will find.

[Joe Block]

Strange, I was feeling around the seat in the rear compartment of my 42 180 limo to check to see if the microphone was there, it wasn't. But i found what i believe to me one of the orginal rear compartment cigar lighters. Looks good to me.

[Guest dave327]

If you ever have your headliner out be sure to look above the passenger side window to see if there is a piece of paper with a drawing of your car with marks indicating all of the scratches and dents that need to be repaired in final preparation. So far I've only found them in that location on two 56 Clipper Super HTs but the picture is of a 4dr so they may be hidden elsewhere on those cars and perhaps senior cars as well.

[Guest imported_Speedster]

I didn't find that paper in my '56 Clipper Super 4-door, and it had original headliner before I replaced it. And it also didn't have the small pieces of wood, inside headliner, where coat-hooks mount, that some people have reported finding. <img src="http://forums.aaca.org/images/graemlins/confused.gif" alt="" />

[WCraigH]

I didn't find any such paper in my Panther nee 56 Clipper 2drHT when I removed the headliner. Of course, it was pretty tore up, so that paper may have fallen out.

[Guest imported_PackardV8]

No blemishes = no paper????

[MBL]

Hey dig this..when I bought my Pack...no keys came with it...at all...they were just lost...as it turns out...I had some keys lying around from this 59 caddy that my ex-girlfriend had...so for some reason I decided to try them...the ignition key worked in the doors and starter switch, and the trunk key worked in the trunk! Hows that for some odds?

Tim

MBL

[Guest]

When I bought my 47 Super Clipper I found the original build sheet stuck up between the gas filler tube and the whistle tube. In my parts car a 1947 Custom I found pages from a Detroit Free Press dated August 1947. It was dirty and looked like some worker had cleaned his hands with it before leaving it under the carpet.